This explains why the FHA and now Fannie and Freddie offer loans with down payments as low as 3.5% and 3%, respectively.

It’s also tough to save up money when rents are increasing at a steady clip. In fact, the average renter had savings of just $12,568 in 2013 when a 3.5% down mortgage (and closing costs) demanded about $12,624 on a median priced home.

Enter a Competition Before Competing for Your Home

The solution? Win your housing down payment in a drawing sponsored by Realtor and Bankrate.

Until March 31st, one lucky winner, yes, just one (chosen at random), can take home $40,000, which can be used as a down payment on a new home purchase or put toward the principal balance of an existing mortgage.

In fact, it can be used for any “home-related” purpose, such as home improvement, home energy upgrades, new furniture, mortgage refinancing, or any other home-related expenditure.

The $40,000 will be delivered after a random drawing takes place on or around the week of April 15, 2015.

To sign up, all you need to do is visit the entry page and follow the three easy steps on the page. It takes a less than a minute.

First you’ll need to select a home from the listings that appear on the geo-targeted landing page, then a related mortgage calculator from Bankrate will calculate the cost of a potential mortgage on said property.

From there you simply fill out your name, zip code, and e-mail address, hit submit and you’re entered in the drawing.

You can get one additional entry by sharing your involvement in the promotion via Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, or Google Plus. However, the max number of entries per person is two, so don’t bother sharing more than once unless you really like sharing.

There are a variety of rules, but no purchase is necessary to take part. You must be 18 years old and reside in the 50 United States or DC. Good luck!

Mortgage Affordability Report

In related news, Realtor.com released its first ever “Mortgage Affordability Report” today. It found that Detroit ranks #1 in affordability with 30-year fixed-rate mortgage purchases expected to require just 13.2% of median income. Renters in the Motor City are predicted to spend 26% of income on rent this year.

Conversely, homes in the San Francisco area will require a whopping 72% of median income, making them out of reach for most. There, renting is expected to require just 40.9% of income.

Interestingly, the national mortgage-to-income ratio is predicted to be 27.6% this year, while the rent-to-income ratio is slated to be 29.5%. So it’s more expensive to rent than own in many cases, though without the means for a down payment, many renters won’t have a choice but to continue renting.